Obama urges Hoosiers to end run as red state |POLL

Workers set up the stage and podium for the Sen. Barack Obama rally this morning at American Legion Mall in Indianapolis. The event drew a crowd of thousands of supporters.

UPDATE:

INDIANAPOLIS —Thousands who waited in long lines on a chilly morning to see Sen. Barack Obama were rewarded with the Democratic presidential nominee's soaring oratory as he exhorted Hoosiers to defy political tradition and vote to make Indiana a blue state Nov. 4.

Now in the election homestretch, Obama headlined a rally drawing an estimated 35,000 to downtown Indianapolis. Defending his tax proposals, Obama cast himself as the candidate of an optimistic future and chided his opponent, Republican nominee Sen. John McCain, as being a continuation of the George W. Bush administration.

With the Wall Street roller coaster, surging unemployment and the Iraq war at the political forefront, several attendees at Obama's rally indicated they hoped the Illinois senator, if elected president, could lead the nation in a different direction.

Kevin Williamson's payday was a motivation behind the two-hour trip from his Southern Illinois home to Indianapolis — and that's not just because he works at the Hershey Candy Co. in Robinson, Ill., that makes Payday candy bars.

"It seems like over the last several years, most of us get these average raises, and they're never enough. It seems like we keep falling farther and farther behind," said Williamson, 39.

As Illinois residents, Williamson and his wife, Dara, have had Obama as one of their senators since 2005. They said the former Chicago legislator connects well with voters in rural Southern Illinois farm country and understands their problems.

"He really does care for the middle-class people; he really is the guy next door; he really does care about the average person," Dara Williamson, 41, said. "It's not just talk, like everyone says. He really does walk the walk."

The Williamsons were concerned about job security — Dara is a licensed practical nurse, working on her registered nursing degree — and interested in Obama's tax plan.

Obama would raise corporate taxes to help pay for tax cuts for workers earning less than $250,000 a year. McCain has blasted Obama's plan as socialism that would drive American companies to take jobs overseas, where taxes are lower.

"Well, Indiana, my opponent may call that 'fundamental economics,' but we know that's just another name for 'Wall Street first, Main Street last,'" Obama told the crowd. "That's the kind of economic philosophy we've had for the past eight years, and that's just fundamentally wrong."

Tish Crumes, a 33-year-old cosmetologist from Westfield, Ind., said she loves Obama's message of unity.

"I'm just happy to be a part of it, happy to be able to witness this in my lifetime — not just that he's black, but there's actually a candidate who wants to bring us together as a country," said Crumes, who is African-American. "This is a change that a lot of us have been hoping for, whether we're Democrats or Republicans."

Crumes, who has a 4-year-old son with Type 1 diabetes, likes Obama's health care plan. Among other things, it would require large employers that do not offer health coverage to contribute a percentage of payroll toward the costs of their employees' health care. With the cost of her son's medical supplies, "if my employer decided to take away my health care, I would be living and working just to pay for my health care," Crumes said. "That would further collapse the economy, because if I can't go out and spend money to build up other businesses, then we're further in this (economic) situation."

The future was very much on the mind of Janie Brown, 44, of Indianapolis, who brought her sons, 10-year-old Conner and 8-year-old Nolan, to the rally.

"These guys have been very interested and invested in the campaign right along," Brown said of her sons, "and I wanted them to have the opportunity; because I think this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity potentially for them to witness something like this, something so historic. I think they'll remember it for the rest of their lives."

With two young sons, what appeals to Brown is that Obama wants to wind down U.S. military involvement in Iraq.

"He wants a more measured military response to what's going on in the world and is much more apt to use diplomacy as a tool than (military) might," she said.

The last Democratic presidential candidate to carry Indiana was Lyndon Johnson in 1964, but Obama told the crowd the 44-year Republican presidential streak could be broken this year.

Indiana unexpectedly has emerged as a battleground state, and its 11 electoral votes are up for grabs.

In all but two states, Electoral College votes are awarded on a winner-take-all system. But Thursday, state Rep. Dennis Avery, D-Evansville, proposed legislation that would have Indiana award its electoral votes according to the presidential results in its nine congressional districts, plus two at large. Such a change — which could not happen until the 2012 election at the earliest — would make it more likely that Indiana would see more spirited presidential campaigns in the future, Avery said, rather than being an afterthought as was the case until this year.

The McCain campaign issued a statement after Obama's appearance, again questioning whether the first-term Illinois senator has the experience and qualifications to be president. "Here is a news flash for Barack Obama: Standing up at a campaign rally in Indiana is not the same as standing up to America's enemies. Delivering a speech does not prepare you for an international crisis, attack or a test from an adversary that believes you are weak and inexperienced," said Randy Scheunemann, senior foreign policy adviser for the McCain-Palin ticket.

INDIANAPOLIS - Sen. Barack Obama has just finished his political rally, exhorting a crowd of thousands in Downtown Indianapolis to vote Democratic and make Indiana a "blue state" for the first time since the 1964 presidential election.

The Democratic presidential nominee told the crowd his economic policies would protect the rights of working Americans while restoring balance and fairness to the tax code. He blasted the approach of his Republican rival, Sen. John McCain as amounting to "Wall Street first, Main Street last."

Obama spoke on a raised stage before a blue "Change" banner bordered by U.S. and Indiana flags. Frequently the crowd interrupted him with chants of "Yes we can, yes we can."

Obama, a U.S. senator from Illinois, is trying to become the first Democratic presidential nominee since Lyndon Johnson in 1964 to carry Indiana - which brings with it 11 electoral votes. He urged Hoosier voters to break with tradition.

"If we can spend $10 billion a month rebuilding Iraq, we can spend some money rebuilding America," Obama told the crowd.

Supporters lined up on a chilly fall morning well before the gates opened, and thousands filled the open-air field at American Legion Mall, four blocks north of Monument Circle in Downtown Indianapolis, to hear the nominee.

To Obama's right was the massive spire of the Scottish Rite Cathedral, and before him he could see the imposing edifice of the Indiana World War Memorial in the distance. Behind him were four columns, capped with gold eagles, comprising a veterans memorial complex.

In scheduling the Indianapolis rally this morning, Obama canceled two others as he reshuffled his campaign itinerary, in order to fly to Hawaii later today to visit his gravely ill 85-year-old grandmother, the campaign announced.

With just 12 days left before the Nov. 4 election between Republican nominee McCain and Democratic nominee Obama, typically "red-state" Indiana finds itself thrust into an unexpected role as a battleground state. Several warmup speakers mentioned turmoil in the economy and stock market.

After the rally ended, many in the crowd marched to an early voting location nearby to cast their ballots in advance of the Nov. 4 election.

Check courierpress.com and the Evansville Courier & Press for updates.

PREVIOUSLY:

INDIANAPOLIS - A political rally featuring Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama and drawing thousands of people has just started this morning in Downtown Indianapolis.

Cheering supporters of Obama have filled the open-air American Legion Mall four blocks north of Monument Circle. At this hour, supporters are hearing speeches from Democratic candidates for other offices, including gubernatorial nominee Jill Long Thompson and 9th District Congressman Baron Hill.

Obama, a senator from Illinois, is trying to become the first Democratic presidential nominee since Lyndon Johnson in 1964 to carry Indiana - which brings with it 11 electoral votes.

In scheduling the Indianapolis rally this morning, Obama canceled two others as he reshuffled his campaign itinerary, in order to fly to Hawaii later today to visit his gravely ill 85-year-old grandmother.

With just 12 days left before the Nov. 4 election between Republican nominee Sen. John McCain and Democratic nominee Obama, typically "red-state" Indiana finds itself in an unexpected role as a battleground state. The warmup speakers mentioned turmoil in the economy and stock market, and urged the audience to take advantage of the early-voting option.

Before Obama's arrival at the rally today, Hill tried to fire up the crowd in noting the Hoosier state's traditionally Republican electoral history in presidential races. "Indiana is the Moses of national politics: We have been wandering around in the wilderness for 40 years now, haven't we?" Hill said as the audience cheered.

Check courierpress.com and the Evansville Courier & Press for updates.